1-4 Then Jesus entered and walked through Jericho. There was a man there, his name Zacchaeus, the head tax man and quite rich. He wanted desperately to see Jesus, but the crowd was in his way—he was a short man and couldn’t see over the crowd. So he ran on ahead and climbed up in a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus when he came by.5-7 When Jesus got to the tree, he looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry down. Today is my day to be a guest in your home.” Zacchaeus scrambled out of the tree, hardly believing his good luck, delighted to take Jesus home with him. Everyone who saw the incident was indignant and grumped, “What business does he have getting cozy with this crook?”8 Zacchaeus just stood there, a little stunned. He stammered apologetically, “Master, I give away half my income to the poor—and if I’m caught cheating, I pay four times the damages.”9-10 Jesus said, “Today is salvation day in this home! Here he is: Zacchaeus, son of Abraham! For the Son of Man came to find and restore the lost.” The Message

He’s faithful.He’s fiery.He’s Little Luther!With his quill, his cap, and his German Bible, this Little Luther Playmobil® is ready to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. He’s the fastest-selling toy in Playmobil history, so order him now before he runs out!According to the product overview:This little 3″ Martin Luther, created by Playmobil®, is just as popular in plastic as he was in person. Dressed in his 16th century academic robes and sporting a neat brown bob and little floppy cap, Little Luther stands ready to help celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. Are you?“Little Luther” costs $9.99–why, that’s less than ten dollars!–and is ready to ship now.[1]Today is the 499th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation – marked by the occasion of Martin Luther nailing the so-called 95 Theses to the door of the church in Wittenberg; which makes me think, shouldn’t Little Luther be carrying a hammer and a really long scroll?The 95 Theses are officially known as “Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences.” Selling a Little Luther doll, or action figure, seems about as counter to the Reformation as it gets. (Of course, that didn’t stop me from pulling out my credit card to buy a Little Luther for myself.) But one of the biggest objections of the reformers had to do with the practice of commercialization, selling things – specifically, indulgences. People paid money for indulgences as a way to gain forgiveness for their sins. People even bought them to cover the sins of the dead. Luther condemned this as an example of an abuse of authority by the Pope and priests, who, he claims, are only interested in money.A few of those 95 statements include

#2 – only God can give salvation, not a priest

#6 – only God can forgive – the pope can only reassure people that God will do this

#10 – the priest must not threaten those who are dying with the penalty of purgatory

#22 – a dead soul cannot be saved by an indulgence

#43 – a Christian who gives to the poor is doing better in God’s eyes than one who buys “forgiveness”

#44 – This is because when you love others, love grows and you become a better person. A person buying an indulgence does not become a better person

#45 – a person who passes by a beggar but buys an indulgence will gain the anger and disappointment of God – (I wonder what God will think about my purchase of a Little Luther action figure?)

#48 – the pope should have more desire for devout prayer than for ready money

#84 – evil men must not buy their salvation when a poor man, who is a friend of God, cannot

Reading through all 95, they become somewhat repetitive, but one thing is clear: Luther is angry at what he considers the abuses of the church, especially related to money.

He wasn’t the only one. Similar protests were taking place in cities throughout Europe. Most of the United Church of Christ traces its heritage to the reformers John Calvin in Geneva and Ulrich Zwingli in Zurich. Large numbers of followers of Calvin and Zwingli became known as the Reformed Church, while followers of Luther, as you can probably guess, became Lutherans. We have some of both in our UCC family tree.

But, you might be asking, what does any of this have to do with us? Who cares? It’s often said that one should know his or her history in order not to repeat it. So I look at this time, the 499th anniversary, as an opportunity to consider whether any of the issues that birthed a reformation then hold any importance today. Not to judge abuses of authority or power. But to recognize that underneath the surface, then and now, the issues were really about grace and faith.

Luther taught: faith, salvation, forgiveness… none of it can be bought, which seems pretty straightforward. It’s certainly not by anything you can buy from a pope or a priest. But it also cannot be earned, which is a little different. It comes by grace from God alone. Still, what does that have to do with us?

I think a temptation for social justice Christians may be in placing our faith in doing the right thing. And perhaps, defining our faith by our correct alliance with certain social issues. We can even reduce our participation in social justice as the definition of a good, faithful Christian. Often indistinct from good citizenship. Sometimes social justice Christianity can resemble the platforms of a political party instead of faithfulness to the Gospel.

Luther said we cannot earn faith from right actions. But that may be exactly our temptation at times. We can elevate actions that demonstrate faithfulness as equal to the simple grace of God behind it all. No, Martin Luther reminded us. Faith comes through grace, not by action. Even as we quote James – faith without works is dead – we must remember – works without faith can ring empty and may soon lead to burnout and compassion fatigue.

If our primary definition is an identification with social justice, we risk reducing God to talking points. But,

Where then is the mystery and majesty that is our Creator?

Where then is the power of the Holy Spirit to heal our divisions and unite us in love?

What then is the purpose of the sacraments if not to mediate grace?

Who and what grants us peace?

Where is the comfort in our dark nights of the soul?

How do we contemplate the things of eternal nature, not just past, present and future? What about beyond time?

Issues of light and darkness, love and hate, life and death.

Are we to simply raise our children to be good people or do we present them with something of greater substance?

Do we offer something bigger and beyond what we can know and define with words and actions?

How can we teach that prayer isn’t wishful thinking but is itself willful action to change the world? Prayer changes things.

Faith without works may be dead, but works, actions, without faith may prove to be empty. And unsustainable. Keeping us busy but not filled with the love of Christ. Perhaps that calls for our own reformation in social justice churches. As in the Reformation 499 years ago, once again, the issues are really about grace.

Luther is angry at what he considers the abuses of the church, especially related to money. The story of Zacchaeus in the Gospel of Luke deals with anger and money too, but maybe not in the way we’ve always thought. I remember the story of Zacchaeus all the way back from my Sunday School days, and little figures of Zacchaeus cut out of felt, but I want to read the story again because I learned something this week I hadn’t known before.

Jesus entered and walked through Jericho. There was a man there, his name was Zacchaeus, the head tax man and quite rich. He wanted desperately to see Jesus, but the crowd was in his way—he was a short man and couldn’t see over the crowd. So he ran on ahead and climbed up in a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus when he came by.

What do we know about Zacchaeus? He’s wealthy. He’s a tax collector. And short. So short he has to climb a tree to see Jesus. He longs to see. But weren’t you taught that he was also a crook? That the reason Zacchaeus was rich was because he was corrupt? That he took more than his fair share? The text doesn’t say that.

But, I can imagine, he not only wants to see. He longs to be seen too; not seen like the crowd always treats him – like a collaborator with the occupying force in Rome – but like a person, which is why he was so surprised when Jesus called out to him.

5-7 When Jesus got to the tree, he looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry down. Today is my day to be a guest in your home.” Zacchaeus scrambled out of the tree, hardly believing his good luck, delighted to take Jesus home with him. Everyone who saw the incident was indignant and grumped, “What business does he have getting cozy with this crook?”

The whole reason we might have thought that Zacchaeus was corrupt was because of the crowd’s reaction. They call him a crook. But that’s because no one working for Rome could be a good person. People see him and think he’s the enemy. And so they grumbled.

I’ve confessed before that Art and I love to watch reality TV. One of our favorite shows which is no longer on the air was Parking Wars. Cameras followed the daily activities of meter maids and tow truck drivers – people going about doing their jobs. But they might as well have been collaborators with the Nazis for the kind of hatred and vitriol they had to endure on a daily basis, not just while writing a ticket or securing a boot but walking into a deli for lunch. People felt free to yell all kinds of nasty things at them. It was/is shocking. They had been trained to take the abuse, but it wore at them. They worked for the evil empire and as long as they did, they were the enemy. But if you have mouths to feed and bills to pay, how do you give up a steady job?

8 Zacchaeus just stood there, a little stunned. (After all, he knew how much people hated him.) He stammered apologetically, “Master, I give away half my income to the poor—and if I’m caught cheating, I pay four times the damages.”

Almost every translation of this text implies that Zacchaeus WILL give away half his income and, because he HAS been caught cheating, he WILL pay back four times. It makes Zacchaeus sound like the transformed villain. That is how I’ve always heard this story, but scholars such as David Lose note that Zacchaeus already does this. There’s no indication Jesus forgave him and told him to change his life. He already gives generously – half his income, in fact. Eugene Peterson is among the few translators who uses the Greek word here correctly. According to David Lose, Luke’s purpose in this story is to show how the crowd that hates Zacchaeus is actually the villain. Jesus isn’t confronting Zacchaeus. He is confronting the crowd. And then rubs it in…

9-10 Jesus said, “Today is salvation day in this home! Here he is: Zacchaeus, son of Abraham! (in other words; just like you) For the Son of Man came to find and restore the lost.”

What a scandal! Jesus declares salvation to the house of Zacchaeus. Not because he has promised to change his ways but because he is an outcast. The kingdom of God is for the poor and oppressed and, like Zacchaeus, also the misunderstood and reviled – among them, even Roman collaborators. Once again, Jesus rubs it in the nose of the religious authorities who think they are the deserving ones. That must have really stung. Jesus loves meter maids and IRS agents, and telemarketers, and defense lawyers, and sheriff’s deputies who remove the elderly from their homes. And members of Donald Trump’s campaign team. People whose jobs make them villainous, no matter whether they are a good person or not. Guilt by association. That’s good news.

It wasn’t because Zacchaeus promised to give away half his fortune or because he promised to make restitution to those he allegedly defrauded. Jesus proclaimed salvation because Zacchaeus was Zacchaeus. Not for what he did but who he was: A beloved child of God. He had done nothing to merit grace except attempt to see and be seen by Jesus. That’s the meaning of the Reformation.

The Protestant Reformation sought to change the equation – not by what you do but by whose you are. Now, sometimes that leads to inaction – to let the needs of the world pass us by. That is why social justice Christians are a gift to the rest of the Church. To call us to accountability in the world. To proclaim: Faith without works is dead. But on the flip side, we must remember that action without faith may soon feel dry. Faith is more than being a good person or being a good citizen. Reformation faith calls us beyond doing the right thing to experience the mystery of grace in simply being you – a child of God.